Argentina’s foreign minister Diana Mondino has said that a decree legalising the use of certain currencies in contracts and payments would apply to Bitcoin. In a December 21, 2023 post on X (formerly Twitter), Mondino said that a decree seemingly aimed at economic reform and deregulation would allow the use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in the country under certain conditions.
“We ratify and confirm that in Argentina contracts can be settled in Bitcoin, and also any other crypto,” she said.
Incidentally, the “Bases for the Reconstruction of the Argentine Economy” decree, passed on December 20, 2023 did not specifically mention crypto, but included provisions that debtors had the choice to pay in currencies not recognised as legal tender in Argentina.
A federal judge overseeing the civil case between the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Terraform Labs has signed off on a protective order keeping material confidential ahead of the trial. The US SEC had charged Terraform Labs and co-founder Do Kwon with allegedly “orchestrating a multi-billion dollar crypto asset securities fraud” in February this year.
In a filing on December 20, 2023 in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Jed Rakoff said that SEC and Terraform Labs had agreed to terms approved by the court, which require parties to largely not disclose materials marked as confidential. All discovery filings marked as confidential will also be sealed by the court before the trial.
The order, however, did not specifically cite the reason for the confidential filings other than Judge Rakoff’s finding “good cause.” Kwon is currently in custody in Montenegro while awaiting extradition to the U.S. or South Korea.
Blockchain-powered telecommunications firm World Mobile will use a tethered, lighter-than-air balloon, known as an aerostat, to deliver internet and other mobile services in Mozambique. The pilot project is being implemented in partnership with Vodacom Mozambique.
The project began in November 2023, but the first call using the technology was placed on December 19, 2023. The aerostat is positioned 300 meters (984 feet) off the ground and contains telecom equipment capable of connecting 100,000 users, according to an announcement.
World Mobile CEO, Micky Watkins, said: “This technology is not just cost-effective compared to legacy telecom infrastructure but also quick to deploy, making it ideal for remote regions.”
